Swiveling in a half-lotus position while leading a role-playing game called “Exalted,” Barry Figgins, the president of the SF State club called the Gamers Conclave, is using every resource he has to provide a welcoming atmosphere and outlet for conclave members to engage in play.

“Exalted” is one of the many role-playing games featured by the conclave, where members take on the identity of supernatural characters whose actions are determined by the rolling of dice and impromptu storytelling led by the gamemaster, Figgins.

The conclave, which has no fee charges and no requirements that members be SF State students, has been making rapid developments toward maintaining a more prominent presence within and beyond the campus community, according to Figgins.

“Gaming is an essential part of life - we exist to make it easy,” said Figgins, 23, who said he is trying to open up the conclave to a diverse group of people. This includes those who are not necessarily hardcore gamers - people can bring chess, Monopoly or even just play poker, he added.

“It’s a low stress way to meet people, interact and get out of the house,” he said.

Figgins said he has an understanding of gaming that is in accord with the philosophy of Plato – giving esteem to the idea that individuals could learn more about each other in an hour of play than in a year of conversation.

The conclave meets two or three times a week on and around campus, and plays a wide gamut of games determined by whoever shows up. Currently, members are pushing for their own office, as some other clubs have.

Doug Shepard, editor of the in-development, online magazine called “Conclavial Serenade,” is accepting submissions for the premiere issue, to be released next month. The magazine will feature short stories, poems, fan fiction, and logs of role playing games.

SF State creative writing major and conclave member Jacqi McKinney, 21, who is also dating Figgins, said she feels that gamers need not be ashamed of their interests. She mentioned one student she saw on campus the second week of school, who was dragged away from a Gamers Conclave booth by her friends.

Conclave member and SF State psychology graduate, Kristan Alicesun, 28, said he feels the club is gaining popularity.

“We use the club to have some fun and network to do it outside of school,” he said. “It’s open-ended right now.

“Everybody has a chance to contribute ideas and start playing video games, too.”

Members of the conclave are in the process of getting the club its own designated room in Burk Hall, where there is projector screen access for video game playing and long tables can be used to play elaborate tabletop games like “Exalted.”

The club is also planning events with other gaming clubs, tournaments and a casino night.

Alicesun said he thinks it would be ideal for the club to have some tables in the student lounge on the bottom floor of the Cesar Chavez Student Center, but said he has lost sight of that hope in consideration of the fact that playing games is not a money-making venture.

Gamers use their creativity and intellect to help them acquire a better sense of things like memory, foresight and negotiation, according to Figgins.

“It’s so much more satisfying to be a part of a fantasy world,” said Bruce Langlois, a 23-year-old philosophy major at SF State who said he spends a lot of time playing role-playing video games. “But you have to be careful to keep a good hold on the real world.

“It’s really easy to get caught up in the alternate reality.”

Despite an on-campus recruiting challenge, with 139 members on their Yahoo! group page on the Internet and an ever-expanding database on the group’s Web site (www.gamerscon.com), Figgins said he believes that the conclave’s mission to think tactically and build the skills of concentration and teamwork is being met.

And in the meantime, all he can do is encourage new members to join with his own words of wisdom.

“You need a strong imagination, and gaming helps you to develop that,” he said.